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Halloween H20: 20 Years Later
Halloween H20: Twenty Years Later, is a 1998 American slasher film and is the seventh installment in the ''Halloween'' film series. It is directed by Steve Miner and starring Jamie Lee Curtis, LL Cool J, Josh Hartnett and Michelle Williams. The film was released on August 5, 1998 to mark the 20th anniversary of the [[Halloween (film)|original Halloween]]. The story was developed and created by Robert Zappia. The screenplay was written by Robert Zappia and Matt Greenberg. It is a direct sequel to John Carpenter's Halloween and Halloween II and set in an alternate timeline in which the events that transpired in Halloween 4: The Return of Michael Myers, Halloween 5: The Revenge of Michael Myers, and Halloween: The Curse of Michael Myers never occurred (rendering those films non-canon). Set twenty years after the events of the first two movies, H20 centers on a post-traumatic Laurie Strode living in fear of her murderous brother, Michael Myers, who attempted to kill her all those years ago. When Michael eventually appears, Laurie must face evil one last time, while the life of her teenage son hangs in the balance. The film also features many homages to the original film, many of Miner's earlier work, Psycho (which was one of the film inspirations for the [[Halloween (film)|original Halloween]] and starred Janet Leigh, Jamie Lee Curtis's mother, who portrayed Norma Watson in this film) and Scream, a 1996 horror/slasher film directed by Wes Craven and written by Kevin Williamson that was inspired by the [[Halloween (film)|original Halloween]]. The film received mixed reviews from critics, praising the script, direction of Steve Miner and the performances of Jamie Lee Curtis and Josh Hartnett, but received criticism for certain plot points and its short running time. Plot Twenty years after the events of Halloween, Marion Chambers (Nancy Stephens), Dr. Sam Loomis' former colleague, returns to her home in Langdon, Illinois, on October 29, 1998, to find it has been burglarized. Neighbor Jimmy Howell (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) searches the house and finds nothing. While waiting for the police in her house, Marion discovers a medical file is missing, the one on Laurie Strode (Michael Myers' sister who escaped the attacks 20 years earlier). She also realizes that someone is indeed in her house and immediately rushes back over to Jimmy's house where she finds him and his friend dead. Michael Myers (Chris Durand), appears and attacks Marion before slitting her throat, killing her. The police arrive as Michael leaves the house with the file on Laurie Strode. On Halloween two days later, Laurie Strode (Jamie Lee Curtis) awakens from a nightmare. Since 1978, she has tried to get her life together with the hope that Michael would never come after her again. She faked her death in an auto accident and then relocated to Northern California under the assumed name "Keri Tate". She has a seemingly perfect life with her teenage son John (Josh Hartnett), boyfriend Will (Adam Arkin), and a job as headmistress at Hillcrest Academy High School, a private boarding school. However, Laurie is far from happy, as the tragic events from 1978 still haunt her. Later that day, Michael finds her using the file, and stalks the school grounds. The students leave for a weekend getaway. Later that evening, John and his friends are having an intimate Halloween party in the basement when John's classmate, Charlie (Adam Hann-Byrd), is attacked and killed by Michael. When Charlie's girlfriend, Sarah (Jodi Lyn O'Keefe), goes looking for him, she finds his body in the kitchen dumbwaiter with a corkscrew embedded in his throat, and then Michael appears. She manages to get into the dumbwaiter next to Charlie and just as she closes the door Michael painfully stabs her in the leg. The dumbwaiter heads down a level and as Sarah gets out Michael slashes a rope, causing the dumbwaiter to fall down heavily onto Sarah's leg, savagely disfiguring it. As she attempts to crawl for help Michael stabs her repeatedly, killing her. John and his girlfriend Molly (Michelle Williams) go looking for their classmates. They find Sarah's body hanged in the pantry and are chased by Michael through the school grounds. At one point in the chase, John is stabbed in the leg. Just as Michael is about to get Molly and John, they are saved by Laurie and Will, who open the door for them just in time. Just as the door closes behind them, Laurie and Michael come face to face for the first time since their last encounter 20 years earlier. Laurie and Will hide the kids and decide to try to kill Michael. When Will sees a shape approaching from the far end of the hall, he takes Laurie's pistol (which she had secretly kept under her pillow at home during all this time) and shoots the shape five times, only to discover that it was the school's security guard, Ronny (LL Cool J). The real Michael then appears and kills Will. Laurie, Molly, and John escape but she tells them to go for help while she chooses to go back to the school with a fire axe. She finds Michael and attempts to kill him several times, and finally after stabbing him multiple times, he topples over a balcony. She approaches his body and pulls one of the knives out of his chest. She slowly raises the knife high above her head, preparing to bring it down on Michael and kill him, but before she can deliver the final blow, Ronny suddenly appears, having survived the accidental shooting and grabs her. He restrains her from attacking Michael and drags her out of the cafeteria. The police come and put Michael's corpse in a body bag, loading it into a coroner's van. Laurie, knowing that Michael is incredibly hard to kill and not believing that he is really dead, grabs the axe from earlier and an officer's pistol, and she steals the van. While driving away, Michael sits up and escapes the body bag. She slams on the brakes, throwing him through the windshield. She then tries unsuccessfully to run him over. The vehicle tumbles down a cliff but she escapes, while Michael gets pinned between the van and a tree. Laurie recovers the axe and approaches him. He reaches out to her, apparently seeking forgiveness and compassion. At first it seems she will accept this, and begins reaching out to him, but then she slowly pulls her hand back and with one swing decapitates Michael, finally killing him. Michael's head rolls down the hill and Laurie exhales. Cast External links * Category:Theatrical releases Category:Movies Category:1998 releases Category:Sequels Category:Horror movies